THE SHE KING; OR, THE BOOK OF ANCIENT POETRY

252 THE BOOK OP POETRY. [PART II.
The while through the vessel there ring
The Ta and £he Nan which they sing,
And the dancers with flutes now appear.
V.
The Ts'oo ts'ze; narrative, SACRIFICIAL AND FESTAL SERVICES IN
TUB ANCESTItAL TBMPLB ; AND THEIR CONNEXION WITH ATTENTION
TO HUSBANDRY.
This and the other pieces to the end of the Book are all ascribed to the
time of king Yew, and said to have been directed against him ;—very
absurdly, so far as I can judge. They are out of place among the mass
of others belonging to a degenerate time, and deserve to be ranked with
the first eighteen pieces of this Part, which are ascribed to the duke of
Chow.
Choo thinks this piece celebrates the services in the ancestral temple
of some noble landed proprietor. I incline rather to the view that they
are those of the king's ancestral temple. The " we " of the stanzas is
simply the poet's identification of himself with the parties of whom he
sings.
See what I have said on the services of the ancestral temple in the
last chapter of the prolegomena ;—particularly on the representation of
the deceased fathers sacrificed to by individuals chosen from among their
descendants. The "priest" introduced here and there was merely "an
officer of prayer." The proper sacrifieer was the king, the noble, or the
chief of the Clan.
1 Here grew the tribulus around,
Till of its thorns they cleared the ground;—
Of old this work was wrought.
Our fathers laboured for our good,
That millet we might plant for food,
. And millet used in sacrifice,
Both yielding to us large supplies;—
So for us took they thought.
Now when our barns are filled with grain,
And myriad stacks in field remain,
Spirits and viands we prepare,
To use on grand occasions rare,
In sacrificial rite.
The dead cannot in form be there,
But there are those their part who bear.
We lead tliem to the highest seat,
Aud beg that they will drink and eat.
So shall our sires our service own,
BE VI. v.] THE BOOK OF POETKY. 253
And deign our happiness to crown,
With blessings still more bright.
2 With reverent air, in dress correct,
With sheep and oxen pure, select,
When autumn comes, and winter cold,
Our temple services we hold,
And offer sacrifice.
The victims slain some haste to flay;
Some boil the flesh ; on stands some lay
The pieces boiled, which some dispose
In order due, exact and close,
According to their size.
The while, the priest, inside the gate,
Lest elsewhere welcome be too late,
Our sires asks to descend.
Complete and brilliant are our rites;
They grandly come, as he invites.
Though hid from us in shadowy veil,
Our offerings with delight they hail,
And to our prayers attend.
Their filial son, our honoured lord,
Great blessing gets. They will reward
With myriad years his duty shown,
And sure maintain upon the throne
His sons till time shall end.
3 Before the fires some reverent stand ;
Some take the mighty trays in hand;
These with the roasted flesh they fill,
Those with the livers broiled. Then still
And reverent, the queen presides,
And every smaller dish provides,
The pious feast to grace.
The guests and visitors draw near.
Divined for, now they all appear,
And take an honoured place.
'Tween those who personate our sires,
Our lord, and them, as rule requires,
Once and again the cup goes round.
Each word and smile just that is found,
Which word and smile should be.